🇲🇺 Cambridge cancelled the A-level maths paper: Mauritius students must resit in June

Cambridge cancelled the A-level maths paper: Mauritius students must resit in June

The A-level mathematics paper (9709/12) that candidates across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Pakistan and South Asia sat on 29 April has been scrapped after the question paper leaked. Cambridge has annulled the result entirely. None of the marks from that sitting will count toward final grades.

A fresh examination is now scheduled for 9 June. Students who sat the original paper are expected to resit. For Mauritius, where A-levels are the gateway to university entrance, this is not a minor administrative glitch. It throws revision schedules, university application timelines, and family plans into disarray.

Cambridge has not said publicly how the paper leaked or who is being held responsible. What is clear is that every candidate in the affected region is now carrying extra weeks of uncertainty heading into what was already a stressful exam season.

Three weeks of cramming, voided by a leak. The resit date lands right on the June holiday stretch.

Man arrested for tipping off Ally Royals before FCC swoop, bail denied

A 44-year-old Flic-en-Flac resident is in custody after the Financial Crimes Commission (FCC) arrested him Friday on suspicion of obstructing its investigation into Ally Royals, the social media influencer held Wednesday for alleged corruption. Bobysen Ramasawmy appeared before the Weekend Court on Saturday and was remanded without bail.

Investigators traced him through call logs on the influencer's own devices. The FCC alleges he tried to tip off Ally Royals before the arrest. He now faces a provisional charge of perverting the course of justice.

They found him through the influencer's own phone. Worth keeping in mind the next time someone says encrypted apps make investigations impossible.

Eight years old and expelled three times: a mother's plea for her son

"If he said he'd been hit, it was him they accused," says the mother of an 8-year-old boy expelled three times since January: once from Saint-Pierre RCA, twice more after a transfer to another school. She speaks anonymously, afraid to make things worse.

He is due back in class Monday 18 May, seeing a psychologist and a paediatrician. His mother says the Ministry of Education has stepped in, but the cycle of expulsions has left them at a loss.

Stay off the water this weekend, weather office says

The Mauritius Meteorological Services issued a public warning Saturday morning against sea excursions as heavy swells and gusts of up to 50 km/h are expected. Anyone planning boat trips or water activities is strongly advised to postpone until conditions improve.

Basketball Mauritius president resigns, says governance has become toxic

Stéphanie Soubanse-Hon Pin has stepped down as president of the Fédération mauricienne de Basket-Ball (FMBB), calling the atmosphere inside the federation's executive committee openly toxic. She is the second resignation in rapid succession; Marc Tse left the board before her. No timeline for elections or interim leadership has been announced.

Shorts

Two officers face bribery charges – Sergeant Moanoovaloo and WPC Ragoo face provisional bribery charges after appearing in court Saturday; bail denied.

Bodha murder suspects held over – Both suspects in Ronnie Gino Bodha's murder remain in police custody as the investigation continues.

Prices climb despite stable rate – Food, services and household goods are getting more expensive even as official inflation holds steady on paper.

Table tennis: Lim Fat claims double titles – Sarah Lim Fat won both under-13 and under-15 divisions at the young players tournament in Beau Bassin.

Mauritius eyes unused Hajj quotas – Mauritius is pushing to claim unused Hajj quotas after the ambassador raised the matter with Saudi officials.

Rs ~10 million

handed by the National Social Inclusion Foundation to foundations run by large private conglomerates, even as smaller NGOs report shrinking allocations.

2 Mauritians

in the medal rounds at the Kickboxing World Championships in Turkey: Wayne Perrine in a semi-final and Jaden Drack in the Under-51kg final.

45 days

added to the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire after talks in Washington, even as Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon continue.

Ebola kills 80 in eastern DRC as Uganda reports an imported case

An Ebola outbreak in Ituri province, northeastern DR Congo, has killed at least 80 people with 246 suspected cases in two health zones. Militia violence and constant population movement make containment extremely difficult.

Africa CDC has warned of a high risk of regional spread. Uganda confirmed a Congolese man died in Kampala from the Bundibugyo strain; no local transmission yet.

Ituri has been through this before and containment is genuinely hard there. The Uganda case is the one to watch.

Senior IS leader killed in US-Nigeria joint operation

A joint strike by US and Nigerian forces killed a senior Islamic State leader Saturday; Nigeria's president called it a significant step in the shared fight against terrorism.

Two in five Sudanese now face acute hunger, new analysis warns

Over 19.5 million Sudanese face acute food insecurity, more than 40% of the population, as the civil war enters its third year.

Israel kills Hamas's top military commander in a Gaza City airstrike

Izz al-Din al-Haddad, described by Israel's military as the head of Hamas's military wing in Gaza and one of the architects of the October 7 attacks, was killed in a strike on Gaza City. He is the most senior Hamas figure confirmed dead since the war began.

The killing comes as ceasefire negotiations remain stalled. Israel says the operation was targeted and precise; Gaza's health authorities report civilian casualties in the same area.

Rival marches bring tens of thousands onto London's streets

Tens of thousands joined rival London marches Saturday: pro-Palestinian and Tommy Robinson supporters. Over 4,000 police kept the crowds apart.

Russia is offering free tuition and high pay to turn students into drone pilots

Russia is offering students high pay and free tuition to pause degrees and serve a year as military drone pilots, reflecting stretched operator capacity.

When you're recruiting from lecture halls, the talent pipeline has a problem.

At 32, Kevin finally has a place that is entirely his own

Kevin has had a motor disability since childhood. He did not get a wheelchair until age six. For decades, having his own space was not a dream so much as "a deep inner necessity."

At 32, he has finally moved into an adapted studio. "I advanced as I could," he says. A quiet story about patience.

Decades of waiting for something most of us take for granted before we're old enough to appreciate it.